Help prevent more carnage before it starts.
Be a voice for exploited greyhounds today.
Wellington Shire Council (Gippsland Victoria), is currently accepting public submissions in response to Planning Permit Application No. P342/2024 lodged by Sale Greyhound Racing Club for the Use and Development of a Racecourse (greyhound racing tracks) at 12 Templetons Road and Mclarens Road, Kilmany, Gippsland, Victoria 3851.
The planning proposal includes building works involving the construction of a straight track, a round track, a kennel building, a machinery shed and a small management/viewing tower. The planning application documents also makes reference to a proposed future effluent disposal system that will be applied for during the building permit stage.
According to the Applicant, the proposed facility is not intended to be a venue where members of the public visit or congregate for “entertainment” purposes. The racing facility proposed is designed as a TV broadcasting venue where race meets and training will be attended by owners and trainers and broadcast accordingly.
Public submissions can be made up to 5:00 PM, Monday 2 December 2024.
Image source: NBA Group. Planning Report, proposed development. This consultation process has closed. Thank you for having your say.
We've made it easy for you to compile and lodge a personal objection to the proposed greyhound track facility.
Council has not loaded all the Applicant’s planning documents on its website so we have obtained all the necessary information so you can access here:
Why are we opposing the proposed Victorian ‘mega’ greyhound racetrack proposal?
Government and independent inquiries and reviews into greyhound racing across many Australian states and territories confirm the same damning results. It’s an exploitative industry guilty of systemic animal cruelty, with an entrenched culture of poor animal welfare standards and cruel practices. The industry has shown itself resistant to – and incapable of – meaningful change or reform, and contributes to the unnecessary overbreeding, suffering, injuries and death of thousands of greyhounds each year. Millions of dollars of taxpayer money is wasted propping up what has been proven to be an unsustainable industry in a feeble attempt to address the widespread issues associated with this gambling fuelled industry and Australia’s corresponding problem gambling culture.
Australia is one of a few countries in the world with a legal and commercial greyhound racing industry, yet the industry is on its last legs. Apart from Australia and the United Kingdom, only Ireland, New Zealand and the United States still allow greyhound racing. Greyhound racing simply cannot survive without the killing and wastage of a certain number of young dogs every year, government support with public money and the gambling industry.
This recent media cover, Victorian government continues to throw taxpayer money at dog killers by Crikey’s Politics Editor, Bernard Keane, says it best, describing how the Victorian greyhound industry loses money by the tens of millions and kills a growing number of dogs and how the state government continues to prop it up.
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Racing on all greyhound tracks, including straight tracks, can result in greyhound injuries and deaths and any increase in the number of death tracks merely increases the volume of racing carnage. Greyhounds are also being killed and injured on trial tracks.
Based on the industry’s current data, an average of one greyhound is killed every three days on Australian tracks, and there are 31 injuries reported daily. Additionally, off-track deaths contribute considerably to this abhorrent greyhound carnage. The injuries and deaths on Australian greyhound tracks continues, despite ongoing assurances by governments, the greyhound racing industry, and the waste of many millions of dollars of public money, and can no longer be justified.
The greyhound racing industry frequently makes unsubstantiated claims about track safety. To date, all the new and refurbished multi-million-dollar greyhound tracks across Australia have failed to result in meaningful improvements in track safety.
Australia already has more than 50% of the world's commercial greyhound race tracks, with 13 situated in Victoria across metropolitan and regional areas which are regulated by Greyhound Racing Victoria (GRV). The development of another greyhound track cannot be justified. Further, this proposal to facilitate greyhound racing by TV will only exacerbate what is already a serious societal issue, especially with online wagering.
Between the calendar year period 2020 to the end of October 2024, tragically, there has been 236 greyhound deaths and 16,812 greyhound injuries on Victorian tracks alone. To date in 2024, 41 greyhounds have died on Victorian tracks, compared to 31 for the whole of 2023, representing a 32% increase.
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The greyhound racing industry is financially supported by 1) a gambling industry that is the largest per capita in the world and 2) Australia’s main political parties, including through the granting of public money which is diverted from healthcare, education, infrastructure and other areas critical to the whole community.
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The current rate of annual greyhound breeding nationally continued unabated, with many more dogs being bred than are able to be rehomed. Research by the Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds shows the racing industry only rehomes one dog for every four it breeds annually.
In the biggest racing states of NSW and Victoria, community-run rescues still rehome more dogs than the cashed-up racing industry and despite the large budgets the big racing states continue to provide their industry-funded rehoming arms.
It has been eight years since the industry was brought to its knees with live baiting and live export exposures and the issues of overbreeding, injuries, deaths and a failure to responsibly rehome discarded greyhounds. The industry and supporting apathetic governments continue to fail greyhounds and public expectations.
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Commercial dog racing only exists and survives because of the lucrative wagering and gambling industry and companies like Ladbrokes and Entain.
Increasingly we are bombarded with online gambling advertising and inducements in an almost predatory manner. We know gambling harms vulnerable people, often destroying lives and families and is the reason dogs are forced to run on dangerous tracks.
In Australia this serious issue has been the subject of a Senate Inquiry, the 'Inquiry into online gambling and its impacts on those experiencing gambling harm' and what is known as the 'You win some, you lose more' report. The Commonwealth Government is yet to provide their response to this comprehensive Senate committee report.
It's important to understand that it's the wagering and gambling interests driving the number of greyhound races, the stresses on the dogs, and of course the injury and death rates. This subject has been delved into by the BBC with a detailed focus on dog racing and wagering in Wales. You can access this very comprehensive BBS media cover here: Greyhound racing increase in Wales 'due to streaming and betting'
The proposed Victorian Kilmany greyhound facility is particularly alarming because it's very clear that this development is about growth in the online wagering and broadcasting of dog racing - it makes no difference if the stands are empty of spectators.
Image: Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds
if you have any questions or need further assistance in compiling your submission, you can contact Animal Liberation’s Regional Campaigns Manager, Lisa Ryan, at lisa.r@animal-lib.org.au.
Thank you in advance for taking action for the greys.